About Us
What We Do
Advance graduate education that fosters intellectual growth, professional achievement, and innovative scholarship and prepares graduate students to address current and future challenges in their fields and communities.
Engage regularly with campus partners to address emerging issues, strengthen graduate program operations, and promote a shared vision for graduate education.
Cultivate community and recognition through events that celebrate graduate scholarship, research, and collaboration among students and faculty.
Support excellence in graduate education by upholding university policies that ensure academic quality, integrity, and consistency across all graduate programs.·
Review and make determinations on exception requests, balancing flexibility with academic standards to support student success.
Oversee key programs that enhance graduate student learning and research, including the Graduate Assistantship Program and the Presidential Research Grant Program.
Align graduate governance by coordinating the work of the Graduate Council with the Office of the Provost and the University Academic Senate.
Collaborate with the Division of Student Affairs and the Graduate Student Association to champion the success and well-being of graduate students.
Our Mission
Support and advance excellence in graduate education and the scholarly and professional activities associated with it, while promoting a diverse, inclusive, and connected community.
Our Vision
Excel in preparing students for tomorrow’s world by offering distinctive and exemplary graduate education programs that are student and career centered, promote impactful community collaboration, and foster engaging scholarly experiences.
Our Values
Our students skillfully engage in conceptualizing, analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating, and applying knowledge to their profession and community.
Our students engage in challenging and transformative activities while learning in a holistic environment.
Our students learn in an environment that is collegial, collaborative, equitable, and inclusive.
Our students develop and sustain personal initiative and maintain a culture of professionalism and integrity.
Our Goals for 2026
Facilitate graduate student engagement by offering numerous and diverse activities that support active learning, degree completion, and professional success.
Increase the opportunities available for students to participate in quality, high-impact activities that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Aid Graduate Program Directors (GPDs) and graduate faculty in identifying the activities that promote the success of all graduate students.
Support the educational experiences of graduate students by collaborating with university committees, faculty, staff, and administration on the enhancement of graduate programs.
Division of Academic Affairs Strategic Plan
The Graduate School is a part of the Division of Academic Affairs and has a strategic plan in place to support its entire division and work towards the University's Reach Higher 2026 goals.
The Division of Academic Affairs Strategic plan can be found on the Provost's Website - Academic Affairs Strategic Framework - Grand Valley State University